am i missing something?! - feed buckets

[dottylottie]

i am at my wits end with my bleeding ponies cracking feed buckets!

i currently have the small gorilla ones which are my preference, but they’re not so cheap and cheerful when i’m having to keep replacing them!

they’ve cracked the big hard plastic “plas” buckets, multiple times

i really don’t like the black rubber ones, and total overkill for the meagre amount they get

not keen on over the door ones either, and i know with certainty diva would throw it on the floor, also not massively safe as she’s protective of her feed so don’t want her at the door really.

biggest issue is i need numerous buckets, as i make feeds up for the week in advance! really cannot afford to be forking out a fortune for them, as i’m going to need 20 of the bloody things i’m getting so fed up of being in a race with gravity to mix the feeds and get them in the stables before all the water leaks out

am i missing something?? i could put a bucket in a bucket, but im back at the drawing board when that one gets cracked too! do they make little baby black rubber ones?



dirty looks for anyone who says to take them out as soon as they’re done this won’t work anyway as lily waits until she’s eaten her net, and diva drags it across the stable which is how she’s cracking hers

 

[nutjob]

If I'm making feeds in advance I use plastic bags which get reused, then you only need one bucket per horse. This type have lasted mine for literally decades, despite being stomped, chewed and thrown about the place

Perry Equestrian Recycled Rubber Eco-Skip Feeder

Designed with a heavy-duty construction these durable Eco-Skip Feeders are produced from recycled tyres (black only) and biodegradable virgin rubber (coloured versions)! Excellent for the Stable, yard and tack room environment, frost and sunlight resistant the Eco-Skip Feeders are non-toxic and...

gsequestrian.co.uk

 

[dottylottie]

If I'm making feeds in advance I use plastic bags which get reused, then you only need one bucket per horse. This type have lasted mine for literally decades, despite being stomped, chewed and thrown about the place

Perry Equestrian Recycled Rubber Eco-Skip Feeder

Designed with a heavy-duty construction these durable Eco-Skip Feeders are produced from recycled tyres (black only) and biodegradable virgin rubber (coloured versions)! Excellent for the Stable, yard and tack room environment, frost and sunlight resistant the Eco-Skip Feeders are non-toxic and...

gsequestrian.co.uk

this is what i did when i was at camp, but i dont like how the supplements got stuck in the bag! yes i have a couple of those, i wish they did a smaller one!

 

[criso]

For supplements I make them up in little plastic pots. I don't make feeds in advance but do supplements so ym can just tip them in. So you could have plastic bags with a pot in each.

 

[Polos Mum]

Could you make the feeds in Tupperware / plastic with lid from Ikea type pots that stack nicely and can be easily rinsed into the feed bowls (I dampen all feed anyway) to get out any loose supplements stuck to the side.

Then you could have one bucket per horse and

 

[eggs]

I use the Gorilla small shallow 15 l feed buckets - each horse has their own colour. I find the trick it to remove them as soon as they have finished eating so that they don't stand on them, throw them around, etc.

If you are giving very small feeds then the 5 l shallow works.

 

[dottylottie]

I use the Gorilla small shallow 15 l feed buckets - each horse has their own colour. I find the trick it to remove them as soon as they have finished eating so that they don't stand on them, throw them around, etc.

If you are giving very small feeds then the 5 l shallow works.

think the 5l ones are the ones i have and really like, but as in the post i can’t take them out as one of them wont eat her feed until she’s finished her net, and the other one drags it across the floor whilst she’s actually eating it, which is what’s making them crack! what i really need are the same size but in the black, tyre kind of rubber!

 

[Widgeon]

I use the black tyre type - even for the baby. He only gets a bit to eat but is a master of smashing things with his cross little front feet, and those are indestructible.

What's your objection to using a bucket bigger than is needed? Mine just lick it all out off the sides. Oh and like @eggs says I take them away once dinner time is over to avoid unauthorized usage by the baby!

 

[Ahrena]

I use the black ones.
I was resistant to buying them as they seem surprisingly expensive for a feed bowl but the rate I was going through hippo ones was ridiculous. My guys like to pick them up and bash each other with them but no damage gets done to the bowl so.

 

[tda]

I've got a small version of those recycled rubber feed skips, had it years tho

 

[Widgeon]

What about these? These are quite mini and they claim to be made of tyre rubber like the bigger ones are.

Rubber Mini Feed Skip 11 Litre

Handy 11 Ltr capacity feed skip made from recycled tyre rubber - in black only.

www.fleetequestrian.com

 

[eggs]

Are you feeding in a stable or the field? If in the stable tip the food out of the bucket onto the floor (or a small pile of hay). One of my horses tips his feed out onto the floor as soon as I put his bucket into his stable .....

 

[Shooting Star]

Red gorilla do the more robust tyre type ones too, not just the thin ones https://www.redgorilla.red/products/gorilla-plas-s1-small-skip?variant=45241064915254

 

[Equi]

this is what i did when i was at camp, but i dont like how the supplements got stuck in the bag! yes i have a couple of those, i wish they did a smaller one!

I actually emailed the company and asked them why they didn’t. I feel like if we got enough people to email they might start, the ones they have are for huge feeds which I don’t know anyone who gives that amount!

 

[SpeedyPony]

I had the same problem, I now have the coloured version of the rubber ones, they've been stamped on, thrown across the field (by the horse, not by me!) and generally abused but are still going strong. The ones I have are biggish, but not ridiculously massive, even if they're just having a scoop of chaff as they do in the summer.
Could you pop a little hay on the floor and just empty the feed bucket onto the hay pile?

 

[FinnishLapphund]

Red Gorilla used to do a small micro tub, 300ml, but on their homepage it says they're Sold out, and it doesn't say anything about if, or when they'll be available again. I found a similar small Flexible tub 0,37L made in Spain on Amazon

https://www.amazon.se/-/en/Flexible-micro-bathtub-0-37-container/dp/B08964C3CV

 

[Dustygirl]

We make up a weeks worth of feeds in plastic stackable containers.

 

[Bobthecob15]

Takeaway containers, you can stack them up and put your supplements etc in them too! The plastic ones, can get them on Amazon!

 

[Midlifecrisis]

May I ask if you leave the feed buckets in with the ponies or collect them when they ve finished? I don’t leave mine in with my horses otherwise they play with them/stand on them etc.

 

[Sanversera]

I moved onto rubber buckets,had some of them for years

 

[Squeak]

I use the red gorilla/ tub trug ones and find it's the cold that kills them, they last fine in normal weather but become brittle in the cold and snap/ break really easily. Are yours breaking more in the freezing weather? If so is it worth getting a couple of rubber buckets to trash when it's really cold and saving the others for the rest of the time?

Or could you use one of the feed bowls in a tyre and tip the feed into it so that the breakable feed buckets aren't being left with the horses?

 

[catkin]

I find that my ponies will eat more tidily from the larger shallow bowls (15l) than the smaller ones, and they get very small feeds. I think it's because they can move the morsels of food about and pick and choose what to eat in what order.

The bowls are usually licked clean and are then removed for cleaning rather than left in stable/field. Each pony has one feed bowl, and I have a tupperware-style mixing bowl for making up fresh feeds. The dry ingredients such as vits and mins and chaff are measured out in advance so only need multiple (small) containers for these.

 

[holeymoley]

I was drawn to the ‘plas’ ones but I didn’t realise they were hard plastic. Youngster had it upside down and put his foot through it . The Perry ones are fabulous but at a small fortune, seem to start around £27 . I’ve always had the tubtrug type ones, oldie looks after all his stuff. Youngster is hash bash and tramples things so they end up out of shape after a while. I’m in a bit of the same situation. I suppose tubtrug ones aren’t overly expensive to replace.

 

[holeymoley]

Red gorilla do the more robust tyre type ones too, not just the thin ones https://www.redgorilla.red/products/gorilla-plas-s1-small-skip?variant=45241064915254

Those ones are plastic though and unfortunately smash up easily if stood on. I thought they would be more flexible than they are.

 

[IrishMilo]

I use the red gorilla/ tub trug ones and find it's the cold that kills them, they last fine in normal weather but become brittle in the cold and snap/ break really easily. Are yours breaking more in the freezing weather?

Yep, this is what I find too. I think the cold is your issue. I use the black old school tyre type, they're flexible enough that they don't snap. The new style Red Gorilla ones seem to be made of a different material (plastic?) and I've seen a couple of posts on FB where a horse has actually got a foot stuck in one and been cut quite badly as the edges were so sharp!

 

[tatty_v]

I feel your pain - the shallow gorilla ones have been broken by two of my ponies, but the black rubber one I bought for my first pony 10 years ago looks brand new!

 

[dottylottie]

I was drawn to the ‘plas’ ones but I didn’t realise they were hard plastic. Youngster had it upside down and put his foot through it . The Perry ones are fabulous but at a small fortune, seem to start around £27 . I’ve always had the tubtrug type ones, oldie looks after all his stuff. Youngster is hash bash and tramples things so they end up out of shape after a while. I’m in a bit of the same situation. I suppose tubtrug ones aren’t overly expensive to replace.

just a few examples of how much my little darlings look after their belongings they have the baby pink & purple plas ones that are saved for “best” - no i don’t have an example, yes they are just gathering dust

lily (purple) isn’t too bad, she just doesn’t look where she’s putting her feet. diva (pink) picks them up and throws them around, but ignores the jolly ball

 

[Goldie's mum]

We feed cows in the black tyre rubber ones. Anything that stands up to a cow is genuinely indestructible.
The surface gets rough after 20 years or so & then we replace them for hygiene reasons.

 

[dottylottie]

I feel your pain - the shallow gorilla ones have been broken by two of my ponies, but the black rubber one I bought for my first pony 10 years ago looks brand new!

the black rubber ones i have are looking tatty but they were cheap ones, i find the only downside is they never really look clean once the rubber isn’t smooth anymore haha.

i might give the perrys ones a go, £7 something on gs equestrian and i can still get pretty colours!

 

[July dreamer]

I use the tubtrug flexible buckets dropped inside a Stubbs tyre bucket in a tyre. I have 4 colours (Breakfast & supper for 2 horses) and I have found that the purple coloured ones are far more prone to splitting. As said above, the cold weather does make them more brittle, but the purple ones break far more easily, even dropping them into the bowls can cause damage.

Not much help, my boys live out, the old one never plays with his buckets but the younger one usually throws it around when he is finished and the purple buckets are his. I have 7 of each colour so I can make feeds for a week.